Type 2 diabetes is a chronic condition that affects the way your body metabolizes sugar (glucose) — an important source of fuel for your body.
With type 2 diabetes, your body either resists the effects of insulin — a hormone that regulates the movement of sugar into your cells — or doesn't produce enough insulin to maintain normal glucose levels.
It used to be known as adult-onset diabetes, but today more children are being diagnosed with the disorder, probably due to the rise in childhood obesity.
Symptoms:
Signs and symptoms of type 2 diabetes often develop slowly. In fact, you can have type 2 diabetes for years and not know it. Look for:
• Increased thirst
• Frequent urination
• Increased hunger
• Unintended weight loss
• Fatigue
• Blurred vision
• Slow-healing sores
• Frequent infections
• Areas of darkened skin, usually in the armpits and neck often indicates insulin resistance.
Causes:
Type 2 diabetes develops when the body becomes resistant to insulin or when the pancreas is unable to produce enough insulin. Exactly why this happens is unknown, although genetics and environmental factors, such as being overweight and inactive, seem to be contributing factors.
Risk factors
Factors that may increase your risk of type 2 diabetes include:
• Weight: Being overweight is a main risk factor for type 2 diabetes. However, you don't have to be overweight to develop type 2 diabetes.
• Fat distribution: If you store fat mainly in the abdomen, you have a greater risk of type 2 diabetes than if you store fat elsewhere, such as in your hips and thighs. Your risk of type 2 diabetes rises if you're a man with a waist circumference above 40 inches (101.6 centimetres) or a woman with a waist that's greater than 35 inches (88.9 centimetres).
• Inactivity: The less active you are, the greater your risk of type 2 diabetes. Physical activity helps you control your weight, uses up glucose as energy and makes your cells more sensitive to insulin.
• Family history: The risk of type 2 diabetes increases if your parent or sibling has type 2 diabetes.
• Race: Although it's unclear why, people of certain races — including black, Hispanic, American Indian and Asian-American people — are more likely to develop type 2 diabetes than white people are.
• Age: The risk of type 2 diabetes increases as you get older, especially after age 45. That's probably because people tend to exercise less, lose muscle mass and gain weight as they age. But type 2 diabetes is also increasing dramatically among children, adolescents and younger adults.
• Pre-diabetes: Pre-diabetes is a condition in which your blood sugar level is higher than normal, but not high enough to be classified as diabetes. Left untreated, pre-diabetes often progresses to type 2 diabetes.
• Gestational diabetes: If you developed gestational diabetes when you were pregnant, your risk of developing type 2 diabetes increases. If you gave birth to a baby weighing more than 9 pounds (4 kilograms), you're also at risk of type 2 diabetes.
• Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome: For women, having polycystic ovarian syndrome — a common condition characterized by irregular menstrual periods, excess hair growth and obesity — increases the risk of diabetes.
Treatments:
There's no cure for type 2 diabetes, effectively managing it can help control it. Your doctor will tell you how often you should check your blood glucose levels. The goal is to stay within a specific range.
Follow these tips to manage type 2 diabetes:
• Include foods rich in fibre and healthy carbohydrates in your diet. Eating fruits, vegetables, and whole grains will help keep your blood glucose levels steady.
• Eat at regular intervals
• Only eat until you’re full.
• Control your weight and keep your heart healthy. That means keeping refined carbohydrates, sweets, and animal fats to a minimum.
• Get about half an hour of aerobic activity daily to help keep your heart healthy. Exercise helps to control blood glucose, too.
